


Safe & Sound

by MsPerception427



Series: Finding Home [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Good Parent Melissa McCall, Healing, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Minor Isaac Lahey/Scott McCall, Pack Family, Protective Derek Hale, Protective Liam Dunbar, Protective Scott, Theo Raeken Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28909095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsPerception427/pseuds/MsPerception427
Summary: Since becoming a werewolf, Liam has lived in a constant state of hypervigilance. He thought he knew true horror but it paled in comparison to seeing Theo fall in a hail of bullets before being kidnapped, tortured, and poisoned. Though it was Monroe that did it, he knew that he and the Pack were just as responsible for what happened to him. He wasn't going to let them get another chance to hurt him again.AKA the time that Theo had zero choice in getting a family, a home, a boyfriend, and a Pack. Cue awkward apologies, new friendships, found family, and no one knowing what a shovel talk is.
Relationships: Chris Argent/Melissa McCall, Corey Bryant/Mason Hewitt, Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken
Series: Finding Home [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2120190
Comments: 11
Kudos: 131





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I really didn't think I was going to make a sequel to Entangled. It was supposed to be a one and done entry for the Whumptober challenge (that I clearly failed lol). But encouraging comments, as well as untold plot threads, made me pick it up again. So here we are. The next installment in the series I honestly didn't see myself writing. I hope you enjoy it!

Since becoming a werewolf, Liam has lived in a constant state of hyper-awareness and fear. Though the berserkers would have a no doubt permanent spot in his nightmares for probably the rest of his life, they no longer were the moment he feared the most. No, the honor of that was the horror of watching as Theo fell to the ground under a never-ending spray of bullets. It took Derek, Scott, Malia, and Kira to drag him away from the warehouse that night. And the only thing that kept him from quitting the Pack the next day was Scott tentatively admitting that he knew Theo was alive because, despite everything, he did consider the chimera his beta, and a connection was formed. 

Still, it was a tense three days with the Pack after they lost Theo. They were giving Liam space after his initial angry outburst questioning their sudden devotion to finding Theo when they never gave a shit if he lived or died before that moment. Mason had tried to calm him down, but it wasn’t lost on Liam that Mason was one of the worst when it came to the reformed chimera. Constantly bringing up his past, questioning his decisions, and in general finding every way possible to let Theo know he didn’t belong. Theo told them it was a trap from the very beginning but because it was Theo, Mason and Stiles ignored the obvious facts and persuaded Scott to go along with what was ultimately a trap. And despite all that, Theo was captured trying to save someone who has made it clear that he hates everything about him. 

So, while he loved Mason with all his heart, Liam really didn’t want to be around him until they found Theo. And they would find him. There was no doubt about that. Especially not with Melissa making it clear that she was done with the Pack treating Theo like an emotional and physical punching bag. She also informed them that regardless of what any of them thought or felt, he was moving in with her, Alec and Chris and that he was her family. They would be treating him accordingly. No one protested. Well, except for Liam. He still thinks it would’ve been fine sharing a room with Theo, but Alec did have a point. They had the rest of their lives to share a bed. He could tolerate not spending every possible second with Theo for a little while longer. 

But only once they found him. And Liam had his doubts that they would in the early hours of the search. He ignored the hurt wafting off the Pack as it became more and more obvious that he wouldn’t rest until Theo was back because he genuinely didn’t believe they would look for him otherwise. The fact that they seemed surprised he didn’t trust them made him even angrier. But he smothered the anger down. It wouldn’t help him. He needed to get Theo back. He could be angry and sad and all of that when he had him back. When he could tell the chimera that he loved him as more than an anchor and a friend. Until that moment, he would play nice with his pack. After that though, all bets were off. 

Thankfully, for the sake of the Pack at least, on the morning of the third day, a haggard and exhausted looking Argent returned with Derek and some guy Liam never met but was familiar to the rest of the Pack. Stiles seemed annoyed by his presence, so Liam liked him automatically. He was later informed that the new guy was named Isaac but most importantly he knew where Theo was. From there it was a blur. Liam was vaguely aware of their plans and talk of the mission. None of it mattered. It was all background noise to the wolf inside of him crying for his other half and the blood of the ones who hurt him… aside from the Pack. He sort of remembered fighting through whoever was stupid enough to get between him and the soft and stuttering heartbeat he had to strain to hear. 

The sight of Theo broken and beaten was one he wouldn’t be rid of any time soon. It would soon take up residence in his brain alongside the image of him falling under the hunters’ bullets. He thought he knew fear, but it was nothing compared to the thought of losing this man. It scared him sometimes. He thought he was in love with Hayden, but he was willing to live without her. Just three days with the thought that Theo might be gone was enough to push Liam into a dark headspace he was just now starting to come back from. Now that he was able to hold on to tangible proof that the chimera was alive and not necessarily well, but on his way there. 

Whenever his brain forced him to remember a worryingly pale Theo hanging limply from Derek’s arms, smearing mercury and blood on the former alpha’s sweater, Liam had to only look up to see him sleeping on his side, facing the beta with a content, lazy smile on his lips that Melissa assured him was from the massive amount of painkillers they had him on while he continued to heal. 

Five days since they fell for Monroe’s trap and almost lost Theo. Three days to find him. Two days for him to be stable. Melissa didn’t sugarcoat it for them. She let them know just how close to death he came. And she said what none of them wanted to admit: Theo didn’t tell Monroe anything. The wounds he had along with the poison spoke to someone losing their patience. He went through unspeakable pain for a bunch of people that treated him like crap. Liam has never hated his pack as much as he did at that moment. 

Now after giving them the silent treatment for the better part of a week, he was going to have to listen to them all try and make nice with Theo. Scott left earlier that morning to give them the heads up that Theo was awake and most likely that Liam was still pissed. He texted a little while ago and said they would be there in about an hour or so. So, he had about an hour to put aside his very complicated feelings for the Pack and also make sure that Theo didn’t just accept whatever pathetic apology they gave him. 

“You’re thinking too loud.” 

Liam snorted, lifting the hand wrapped around his to his lips. Theo gave him a hint of a smile in return. “You usually say I don’t think at all. This is a welcome change.” 

“I would say that but,” Theo trailed off. He bit his lip. “I thought you would be happy, but you don’t look happy. You don’t smell happy.” 

“I am happy but I’m also not happy,” Liam admitted. “I’m so happy you’re back and you’re going to be okay. I’m over the moon happy that we’re together. And I’m ecstatic that we’re going to be moving you in with Melissa and Alec. But I’m not happy that the Pack is going to try and pretend like it wasn’t our fault you ended up here in the hospital.”

“Liam…” Theo started, but the beta shook his head, cutting off the self-deprecating excuses he was going to give that would let them off the hook. 

“I already know what you’re going to say. You’re going to tell me that you were evil. And that you killed Scott and Tracey and Josh. That you manipulated us. That you’re a bad person who deserves the worst. Is that what you were going to say?” 

Theo blinked, a frown tugging at his lips. “More or less.” 

“I figured. I hear you. And I know all that. But I also know that you’ve saved my life more times than I count. You’ve stopped me from doing things I know I’ll regret. You’ve saved all of us several times over just because Scott asked you to despite knowing you wouldn’t get so much as a thank you or even a smile.” 

Liam sighed. “I also know Monroe gave you a choice to join her, but you wouldn’t. You wouldn’t tell her anything about us and what we knew. And she damn near killed you. I know that, Theo Raeken.”

“That doesn’t change what I’ve done,” Theo protested. Liam sighed. This idiot. 

“No, it doesn’t change what you’ve done. But what you’ve done also doesn’t change who you are. You’re not a bad person, Theo. You’re just human. You’ve made your share of mistakes and you’re making your best effort to overcome that. And the way we treated you wasn’t right. You shouldn’t be sleeping in your truck, hanging on for whatever scraps of affection and attention you can get from us. You deserve more.” 

Theo swallowed, but Liam could see the sheen growing in his eyes. He squeezed his hand again. 

“We’re going to have to start some serious work on that self-esteem, babe. For someone so smart, you’re really dumb when it comes to yourself.” 

Theo laughed, sniffling a bit. “I guess that’s what I have you for, right? I mean since you’re my boyfriend and all. You’re going to be around to tell me that I don’t suck. Right?”

Liam hated that there was even a sliver of doubt in his voice. Like he really thought Liam would change his mind. The chimera was his and he would put a ring on him tomorrow if that’s what it took. But for now, he could settle for a little less grand gesture. 

“Damn right I’m your boyfriend. And lucky, lucky me, because you’re mine,” Liam grinned. Theo rolled his eyes, his smile dimming a bit. Liam sighed. “Theo, I know that it’s not going to be easy, but you trust me, right?” 

“Of course.”

“Then trust me when I say that I’m going to be with you every day until you start to see yourself the way I do. And then every day you’ll let me be there after that.” 

“What if… what if I want you around forever?” 

“Then we’re on the same page,” Liam replied, without a hint of hesitation. “I love you, Theo Raeken. I love you enough that I’m willing and ready to fight my entire pack for you.” 

“Literally not necessary,” Theo huffed, pushing at him lightly but Liam heard his heart skip a beat. “And you know I… I feel the same way.” 

Liam nodded. He knew better than to expect Theo to say the words back. He was just excited that the chimera wasn’t fighting him on this. That he seemed to be on board with that. Granted, he didn’t exactly give the older teen a choice. But that's beside the point. He meant every word of it. He wanted to be with Theo for however long he would allow it. And he would mow down his own damn pack if it meant Theo would be happy and free. 

He sighed as he heard several heartbeats heading their way. It wasn’t the whole Pack, but it was enough to have Theo tensing. Despite his bravado, he clearly wasn’t looking forward to this any more than Liam was. They both winced as they recognized Stiles and Malia as part of the group. This was going to be terrible. He bumped it up a notch to awful when Kira, Mason, and Corey made an appearance. Though it was made minutely better when Melissa, Derek, and Isaac slid into the room after them. 

Scott made his way to the other side of Theo’s bed where he had mostly taken up residence since they rescued Theo. Isaac pulled a free chair over and plopped down beside the alpha, throwing a smirk at an utterly bewildered Theo. 

“Theo, meet Isaac. The very first beta of the McCall Pack.” 

“Wait, I thought I was your first beta,” Liam protested, wrinkling his nose.

“First bitten beta,” Isaac shrugged. “Very important distinction here, junior. Derek gave me the bite and then I abandoned him for Scott. Best decision ever. Scott is definitely way cuter.” 

Scott rolled his eyes, flushing lightly. “Can you not?” 

“Oh, you mean you want me to not be roguishly charming and adorable because the rest of the Pack is trying to find the words to say that they were assholes without actually admitting that they were assholes?” Isaac asked, raising an eyebrow. Scott rolled his eyes again. Isaac smirked. 

Liam really, really, really liked Isaac. 

“Well, since it’s been addressed,” Liam trailed off, pointedly staring at the awkward looking Pack. They all shuffled around but no one made any move to speak. Liam repressed the urge to roll his eyes. 

Derek snorted. “There are literally two words you guys can say. It’s not even that difficult.” 

“Fine,” Stiles huffed. “Theo, we….”

“No.” 

All eyes were on the chimera. He had untangled his hand from Liam’s when the others first arrived and now was twisting them in the sheets in an obvious display of anxiety. Melissa seemed particularly concerned but didn’t move towards him. Instead, she, like Liam and Scott, was dividing her attention between the nervous Theo and the stunned to silence Pack. 

“I,” Theo started, clearing his throat. “I don’t want to hear what you have to say. If you don’t mean it then I don’t want to hear it. I know you’re all in here because Scott and Liam said something but… nothing has to change. We don’t have to be friends. I didn’t do what I did to try and get on your good side.” 

“then why did you?” Mason asked. Liam growled in his best friend’s direction prompting Corey to shift in front of him, but it was Theo’s hand on his shoulder that brought him back. Mason seemed unphased by Liam’s reaction as he was busy shaking his head. “That’s not how I meant it. I mean… why? I don’t get it. With the exception of Alec and Liam, sometimes Scott and Derek, none of us are particularly nice to you. Especially me. But you still saved me. Again. You only got caught because you saved me. You almost died instead of giving Monroe what she wanted. And I don’t understand why.” 

“Because I’m not one of the good guys. But you all are. I know you’ll never trust me and I’ve pretty much accepted that. But I couldn’t be the reason Monroe won. I didn’t need any more blood on my hands.” Theo shrugged half-heartedly, smiling sadly. “I think it’s fair to say I have enough of that already.”

“You’re wrong,” Stiles said, stepping forward slightly. He sighed, looking at Derek who was the closest to encouraging that Liam had ever seen. “Theo, you’re wrong. You’re definitely one of the good guys and we are clearly not that great these days.” 

“Wha…?”

“Melissa, Scott, Liam, and Derek were all right when they said we use you. We do,” Stiles continued, ignoring Theo’s confusion. “We use you to fight the battles we don’t want to and don’t bother to care when you get hurt. We use you to make ourselves feel better about the crap we’ve done. Because no matter what we’ve done, we’re not as bad as you. Or at least that’s what we tell ourselves. But really you’re doing better than us. Because you admit what you’ve done. The rest of us just brush it off and try and forget it ever happened.” 

“I…” Theo shook his head. “You guys aren’t bad. You’re nothing like me.” 

“That’s actually not that true. I definitely have way more of a body count than you,” Mason laughed, mirthlessly. Liam sucked in a breath. “I didn’t have control, but I was the Beast. I hurt people. I killed people. The Beast is the reason Monroe waged war against the supernatural. All of those deaths… that’s on me.” 

“You didn’t have a choice,” Theo protested. “The Dread Doctors changed you. They’re the ones that altered your DNA. They’re the reason you got possessed with the Beast. They made you a monster. You didn’t become one because you wanted to.” 

“Neither did you,” Mason countered. “You were manipulated and experimented on. They treated you like you were a little better than a pet. Actually, that’s not even true because a pet at least knows it’s loved. I’m sorry, Theo. Because I was so busy trying to forget what it was like to be the Beast that I ignored that it was what happened to you. Only you didn’t have a Pack to fall back on.” 

“Oh,” Theo murmured so quietly that Liam was sure only he and the other supernatural members of the Pack heard. “I, uh….” 

“I killed my mom and my sister,” Malia announced, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I, uh, didn’t want to do it. But I transformed and I killed them.” 

“I did a lot of things as the Nogistune,” Stiles said, looking supremely uncomfortable. “Allison and Aiden.” He waved off a concerned-looking Scott and focused on Theo. “The point is we’ve all done bad things. Terrible things. And it’s time we stop acting like you’re the problem. We’ve all done things that we regret, and no one holds it against us. It’s wrong that we do it to you. We’re sorry.”

Liam blinked, eyes darting first to Scott, who seemed equally surprised, and then to Theo. The chimera was staring at the others with a blank expression on his face. The room was terribly quiet again, but no one dared break it. That is until a tear slid down Theo’s cheek. That was all it took for chaos to reign supreme. Liam was torn between comforting Theo and punching the others. Isaac looked thoughtful. Scott looked angry and the rest of the Pack was panicking. The general consensus amongst all of them was that they broke Theo. 

Melissa took charge shortly after it was clear that none of them were going to address the actually sobbing chimera, shooing them all out of the room, taking Scott’s place in the chair by his bed. It didn’t escape Liam’s attention that Derek got to stay. Stupid grownup stuff. Still, Theo clearly needed a moment to process everything and that wasn’t going to happen with the Pack lurking in the room. So, Liam would let him have a moment with his soon to be adopted mother and Derek. Liam needed to have a moment of his own. 

“Hey, Mase. Can we talk?” 

Corey looked apprehensive but Liam could smell the relief wafting off his best friend. He knew it likely mimicked his own scent. It was hard not talking to Mason these last few days. 

“Yeah, I’d like that,” Mason said, letting go of Corey’s hand and following Liam to one of the empty exam rooms nearby. 

He was still reluctant to be too far away from Theo but this thing with Mason needed to be resolved. He needed his best friend back. 

“I’m sorry.” 

Both blinked at the synchronized apologies before laughing. The wall between them was gone and for the first time in a week, Liam felt he was back on the same page as his best friend. 

“I am, you know? Sorry? I shouldn’t have treated you like that.”

Mason shook his head. “It hurt but it was what I needed to get my head out of my ass. You’ve been right about Theo this whole time. We treat him like crap and expect him to stick around and take it as penance. It’s wrong. We were wrong. And I have a lot more groveling to do with him but I’m going to make it right with him.” 

Liam grinned. “Yeah, I think he’d like that.”

“Besides,” Mason continued, smirking knowingly. “I gotta make nice with my best friend’s boyfriend.” 

“How do you even know about that? It literally just happened last night!” 

“It was the third thing Scott told us after ‘Theo is awake’ and ‘you better not screw this up’. Lydia won $100 because no one really thought you would tell him when he first woke up. We thought you would give him a few days at least.”

“I thought about it, but I didn’t want to let another day go by without him knowing what he means to me. I love him, Mase. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to him.” 

“I know. And thankfully, we’re all on board now. We’re going to take care of our chimera.” 

Liam beamed. “Yeah, I guess we are.” 

“You are so whipped already,” Mason laughed. “Are you guys going to be one of those couples? That smile anytime someone says the other one’s name?” 

“I wouldn’t talk, Mr. I Still Blush Anytime Corey Breathes Near Me,” Liam countered, raising an eyebrow as Mason flushed. He snickered. “Don’t worry, Corey does the same thing around you. He just goes invisible so you can’t tell. But everyone with supernatural senses knows that he’s just as stupidly gushy about you.”

“Shut up, Liam!” Corey hissed, finally dropping the invisibility. Liam didn’t know why he even bothered. Corey rolled his eyes. “You knew I was there from the very beginning, didn’t you?”

“Yeah,” he grinned. “I don’t blame you. You were worried about Mason. I know I haven’t been the greatest of friends this week, so the concern was valid. It’s okay.” 

Corey nodded. “Yeah, but Liam… Theo… he’s going to forgive us. I know he is. He’s going to just accept our apologies and move on. Because he thinks that he still owes us something. So, he’ll just take whatever the hell we give him.”

“He will because you’re right. He does think that he still owes us.”

Corey’s mouth twisted into a frown. “Don’t let him. Don’t let him just sweep it under the rug. It’s what he does. He did it with the Dread Doctors and he’ll do it with us if we let him.” 

Liam arched an eyebrow. “You didn’t speak up in the room, but I know you’re not his biggest fan either. You point-blank told him that we would all be better off without him ‘hanging around, begging for scraps’.” Corey winced and even Mason looked bothered by that. 

“Yeah, that was not my finest moment. But I’m not going to lie and pretend I didn’t say and sort of mean it. I’m not his biggest fan because I don’t like who I was when I was around him,” Corey sighed. “I’m not any better than the rest of the Pack. I like to pretend Theo was the big bad monster that made me do bad things. But I did them willingly. Happily. I only left because I was worried about Mason.” 

“Corey…” Liam started, trailing off as the chameleon shook his head. 

“I’m not saying this because I want sympathy. I’m just saying that… I was wrong. We all were. He’s changed and we won’t let him because it means we have to face up to the stuff we’ve done. We make mistakes and hurt people and then act like it never happened. None of us have owned what we do. Not like Theo has. Not like you do, Liam. That’s probably why you and Theo get along. You know what it’s like to lose control and take responsibility after.”

Mason wrapped an arm around his boyfriend, hugging him tightly before focusing on his best friend again. 

“Corey is right. Theo is going to just accept what we do and what we say. And eventually, we’ll start slipping again. Don’t let it happen. I know the only reason he even sorta stood up to us today was because of you. So just keep being an angry overprotective boyfriend and make sure we don’t destroy what’s left of Theo’s humanity, okay?”

Liam snorted. “Yeah, okay. I definitely think I can do that.” 

“Especially the overprotective boyfriend part,” Mason snickered before Corey vanished them both.

Liam rolled his eyes. He really hated his friends sometimes. Still, he knew what they were saying was true. The Pack wasn’t perfect. They would totally backslide on caring for Theo. It would be his job to hold them accountable. And he would.

“Liam?” Derek’s voice cut through his thoughts. “Theo is asking for you.” 

He was moving before he even thought about it. He heard Mason and Corey snickering but the idea of comforting his boyfriend was far more welcoming than getting revenge. Besides, Theo was the second-best tactician they had in the group. If anyone could help him get even with the obnoxious couple, it was Theo. 

“Hey, before you go in, there’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,” Derek said, stopping them a few feet away from Theo’s room. 

It was the perfect distance in that he couldn’t hear everything in the room, but he could still hear Theo’s heart beating steadily. Meaning Derek wanted him to be close enough to his anchor to register his presence but far enough that conversations couldn’t be overheard. Oh, boy. 

“Dere….”

“I know you and Theo are together now,” Derek started, cutting off Liam’s question. The wolf huffed. Really? Derek was one of the good ones even before Theo got kidnapped. So why he trying to warn him off about dating the chimera now? “Judging by the annoyed expression on your face, I think you have an idea of what I want to talk to you about.” 

“Seriously, we’re doing this now?” 

“Yeah, but I think you have the wrong idea. I’m not here because I think dating Theo would be bad for you. Actually, given your sheer amount of rage, having him around you almost all the time is a great idea.” Liam narrowed his eyes though he had to admit that Derek had a point. Derek smirked. “I just wanted to say that I know you’re going to look out for Theo. I know you’re not going to let the rest of the Pack hurt him. But they couldn’t even if they tried.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“With the exception of Scott, Melissa, and Alec, Theo doesn’t care what the others think of him. He gave up on getting them to accept him much less like him a while ago. And that’s something they’re all going to have to deal with on their own. There’s only one person that can hurt him. And I’m here to make sure that doesn’t happen.” 

“Who… wait….” Liam’s jaw dropped. “It’s me. Are you giving me the shovel talk?” 

“The what?” 

“The shovel talk. You know the thing where you threaten me to make sure that I know that if I hurt Theo you can and will beat me to death with a shovel.” 

“I’m a werewolf. Why would I use a shovel?” Derek asked, brow furrowing in confusion. 

“How are you dating Stiles and this clueless about pop culture?” Liam countered, rolling his eyes. “Listen, I get the point. I know where I stand with him. The last thing in the world I want is anyone from this Pack hurting him, especially me. Trust me, if I hurt him, I’ll hand you the shovel myself.” 

“Reminder that I don’t need a shovel, but I’ll accept it.” Liam grinned, stretching his hand out. Derek rolled his eyes and accepted the handshake. “Go get your boy. I’ll send the others home. They need some time to work on their groveling anyway.” 

“You’re secretly soft on the inside, aren’t you?” 

“Reminder that I have no problem beating you with a shovel even if you don’t hurt Theo.” 

Liam snickered, moving away from the irritated former alpha. As he walked back in the room, he saw Melissa already rising from her spot by Theo’s hip. The chimera was biting his lip, clearly lost in thought. Melissa pressed a kiss against his forehead pulling an adorable blush from the boy. 

“Just think about it, okay?” 

Theo hesitated before nodding. “Okay.” 

“Alright, he’s all yours. Please remember no strenuous activity for at least three weeks means nothing more than a couple of kisses.” 

“Oh my god,” Theo mumbled. Liam was both amused and disturbed. Also, disappointed because really? Three weeks before he could touch all that? That was going to be rough. 

“I mean it, Dunbar. I know where you live.” 

“I promise,” Liam said, holding up a hand in a mock pledge. Melissa gave him a dry look before ruffling his hair and leaving the room. 

Liam let out a quiet sigh as he finally settled back at Theo’s side. He was only away from him a top ten minutes, but it felt like too long. He threaded their hands together again. 

“You’re not going to ask me?” 

“Ask you what?” 

“About what Melissa and I were talking about.” 

“Nope,” Liam grinned. “If you want to tell me, that’s great. But you don’t have to. You’re entitled to have your own business outside of me. Melissa has basically adopted you, babe. You’re going to have a lot more conversations like that in the future.”

Theo’s mouth turned down as he stared at their joined hands. Liam squeezed his hand encouragingly. 

“Talk to me.”

“I… I’m not sure how to do this. Any of this. It looks so easy when you do it but I… I don’t know how to be a boyfriend. I don’t know what being a good son or a good brother or even what a good friend looks like. I don’t know if I can do this.” 

“Theo, it’s not easy at all. You’re going to make mistakes. We all do. But what’s important is that you trust me and that I trust you. I do. And I know you trust me too. As long as we have that we’re going to be okay.” 

“Yeah? Even if I can’t do the cute pet name thing?” 

Liam smiled, leaning forward to press a kiss to the corner of Theo’s mouth. 

“Even if you never call me a single pet name. Even if you awkwardly leave the room when Melissa calls you her son or Alec calls you his brother. We’re going to be okay.” 

Theo sighed, nodding his head slowly. Finally, it seemed like he reached some kind of internal conclusion as a little of the weight lifted off his shoulders. Liam could tell he was still bothered by what he thought he was lacking but he seemed a little more settled. He would be okay with that for now. 

“Besides gotta say you’re not doing too bad on the friend thing.” 

“What do you mean?”

“Derek just gave me the shovel talk.” 

Theo frowned. “What’s the shovel talk?” 

“How are you people this clueless?! Okay, that’s it. Pop Culture 101 starts the minute you’re out of here! I will not let my boyfriend or his very scary guardian wolf live their lives devoid of critical cultural references.”

“I feel like that’s not a thing,” Theo protested. 

“Totally is.” 

“You’re weird.” 

“Yeah, but you love me anyway,” Liam grinned. 

Theo rolled his eyes but tugged lightly on his hand. Liam moved forward naturally meeting Theo for a soft and chaste kiss. It left him desperately wanting more but for a first kiss, it wasn’t bad. In fact, it was perfect. He broke the kiss first, pulling away to stare at Theo. the chimera blinked his eyes opened, slowly. A smile spreading on his lips. 

“I do, you know?” 

“I do know. Because I know you.” 

“You really do, don’t you? You know the bad parts and you’re still here.” 

Liam kissed his hand. “Still here and I’m not going anywhere.” Theo gave him another fragile smile before yawning. “Go to sleep, sweetheart. I’ll be here till my dad is done for the day. I think Scott said he’ll be here to stay with you overnight.” 

“Okay, Little Wolf, sounds good,” Theo murmured, seemingly okay with Scott coming back. He settled back against the pillows, falling asleep before his head was even fully down. 

Liam smiled, cradling their hands against his chest. He really, really loved this man. And he was going to do everything in his power to make sure he really understood just how much. Even if that meant protecting him from not only the Pack but himself as well. He felt a sleepy pull on his hand and just barely stopped himself from making a sound. 

Theo clearly wanted him there by his side. And luckily that’s all Liam ever wanted. So he scooted closer to the bed and settled down to wait. If Theo wanted him here, then here was where he would be. 


	2. Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Theo has a nightmare, Scott comes to some heavy realizations and both find this family thing might not be so hard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with another chapter of the sequel I didn't intend to write! Hope you enjoy!

Scott was two pages into his Organic Chemistry assignment when the quiet of the hospital was broken by an odd sound. It was soft and almost unnoticeable to the average person. But he wasn’t average. He was a werewolf and more importantly an Alpha and the sound said that one of his Pack was in distress. But how? Everyone was safe. They got Theo back. Monroe was dead. And Liam was 80% less homicidal towards the rest of the Pack. Lydia wasn’t giving everyone the silent treatment anymore. So what was happening now? 

He looked up from his notes to the figure that was currently trembling on the bed and he felt his heart clench. Oh, Theo. Nightmares weren’t something new for the chimera but this one looked particularly awful. The whimpers were fading into words. Scott put his books away and crossed the room to sit by Theo’s side. He tentatively put a hand over the chimera’s hoping to draw away pain but there was none. Whatever was wrong with Theo was in his head. That was worse. 

“No… Tara. No.” 

“Theo?” Scott said his name as gently as he could but the chimera still flinched away, lost in whatever he was seeing. Scott listened and could hear Theo's heart racing. The previously steady beeping from the heart monitor he was still hooked up was beeping in a shrill, sick echo. “Theo, you need to wake up.” 

“Scott, what’s going on?” 

He looked away from Theo to see his mom entering the room with a worried look on her face. Though the question was directed at her son, she only had eyes for Theo. 

“I think he’s having some kind of nightmare but I can’t wake him up. He’s not hearing me. I think… I think he’s dreaming about Tara.”

“You need to get through to him. His body can’t handle this kind of stress,” Melissa said, frowning a the various machines he was hooked up to. “He’s barely healed from the poison as it is. Not to mention his wounds. He needs to wake up now.” 

“Theo!” Scott shouted, trying to put a bit of the authority of the alpha in his voice. Theo continued to mumble. Scott sighed, shaking Theo’s hand a little. He winced as the younger man flinched again. “I don’t know what else….. Anchor!”

He ignored his mother’s confusion as well as Theo’s fervent mumbling of his sister's name in favor of pulling out his phone. He tapped the number and anxiously listened to the rings, already plotting what he would have to do if he didn’t pick up. 

“Scott? Is something wrong? It’s really…”

“Liam, Theo is having a nightmare. It’s really bad and I can’t get through to him. But you can. You gotta talk to him and get him to calm down,” Scott said, already moving the phone to Theo’s ear. 

He heard the beta start rambling about something to do with some island in Greece and a zoo. He didn’t focus on the words, merely the effect the words had on Theo. As soon as he heard Liam’s voice, Theo’s frantic mumbling stopped. His body started to relax and soon he was blinking blearily in Scott’s direction. The alpha gave him a smile and squeezed the hand that was now holding on to his. 

“Thanks, Liam.” 

“Do I need to come over?”

Theo’s eyes widened and he shook his head. Scott frowned but nodded. 

“No, I think we’re okay. But we’ll see you first thing in the morning.” 

Liam sighed. “Okay. I’ll see you in the morning then. Goodnight, Theo.” 

“Night,” Theo croaked, hoarsely. 

Scott could practically feel Liam’s concern growing over the line and ended the call before the beta could say anything else. He absently put his phone away all the while keeping a hold on Theo. Though he made a show of pretending he wasn’t paying attention to him, all of his focus was on Theo who looked even smaller as embarrassment flooded his scent. He was looking anywhere that wasn’t Melissa or Scott. 

Melissa made a humming sound before making an excuse to leave the room. She kissed both boys on the cheek before sending Scott a pointed look and leaving the room. 

“Hey,” Scott said after a heavy and lengthy silence. He squeezed the hand he was still holding and felt relieved when Theo did the same. “You remember the last time we were in the hospital like this?” 

“You mean last night?” 

Scott laughed. “No, I was thinking a little further back. When we were in the fourth grade. It was just you and me.” 

Theo tensed. “You had a bad asthma attack. A really scary one. Your mom was in the middle of some intense surgery and no one could reach her.” 

“My dad wasn’t available because he never was back then,” Scott rolled his eyes. “I couldn’t bother Stiles or his dad because that’s when Stiles’ mom was really sick. I was so scared that I was going to be all alone. Until you came along.” 

“I walked to the hospital,” Theo continued, his voice barely above a whisper. “I couldn’t get a ride so I had to walk. But I saw how scared you were when they put you in the ambulance and I knew I couldn’t let you be alone.” 

“The hospital staff felt so bad,” Scott laughed, the memory a little clearer. “You were so small back then and it was raining, yet there you were demanding to see me. No one had the heart to make you go home. So they let you stay with me while I got my treatment. And you held my hand the entire time.” 

“I… I almost forgot about that.” 

“I never got to tell you how much that meant to me,” Scott said. “I was out of school for the next week. But all I kept thinking was that I couldn’t wait to get back to school to tell you how much it meant. How you were my best friend too. Because no one other than Stiles ever sat with me and just held my hand. I wanted you to know that it mattered to me. But when I finally got back, your sister died and you were gone.” 

Theo swallowed, breath coming out a little shaky but he didn’t let go of Scott. 

“The Dread Doctors were in my head even then,” Theo sniffled. “I, uh, I got really sick from that walking to the hospital stint. My heart. It was worth it. But my parents were pissed. Told me I did it on purpose. That I was already useless and I made myself even more useless.” 

Scott repressed the urge to growl. He had a feeling that Theo’s home life wasn’t the best when they were kids but he didn’t really understand how true that was. He couldn’t quite grasp how a parent could do anything but love their child unconditionally. Even though his father was not the best example of a parent, Scott never doubted that his father loved him. When it came to Melissa, Scott knew that he was her world. That she loved him. With the exception of Tara, Theo had no one that loved him for him. It wasn’t a wonder that the Dread Doctors got him. It was a miracle they didn’t get him sooner. 

“The Doctors said that… they said that Tara wanted me to have her heart,” Theo continued, his free hand rising to his chest and the other tightening around Scott. “I was so stupid. I actually believed them. I watched her drown, Scott. And then I watched them carve her heart from her body and put it in me. When I was in the Skinwalkers’ prison, she came to take it back. Over and over. Sometimes I forget I’m not there anymore. Sometimes I think I see her. She… never stops.” 

Scott bit his lip, not wanting to make a sound but really? So much of Theo made sense now. The way he would sometimes lose focus and stare at shadows like he saw something. The way they could all sometimes hear his control slip and his heart racing. The nightmares…. Scott already felt guilty for the things he stood by and watched happen but it intensified in that moment. Theo was too damn young for any of this. This was on Scott. While they were all young, Theo was even younger. He was just a kid. 

It was a common misconception that Theo was the same age as Scott and Stiles simply because he was in the same grade. No, Theo was only a few months older than most of the Puppy Pack. He was barely seven years old when monsters came and told him he could be better after years of being told he wasn’t good enough by his parents. They lied to him and then tortured him. He came back to Beacon Hills changed and warped. Yes, he manipulated the Pack but it was because it was all he knew for ten years. Then they put him in Hell. 

They put him in Hell and even after he was free, held his actions against him every chance they got. The actions that Scott set in motion by putting Deucalion in his midst. Scott helped yet another adult manipulate a scared and tortured teenage boy. Then he stood by and watched as said teenage boy got thrown into a prison world because they couldn’t deal with him and even after he was freed, he was used as the Pack’s punching bag. Aside from a few friendly pats on the shoulder or invitations to Pack nights, Scott did nothing to stop any of it. He just stood by and let it all happen. 

“Scott?” 

The alpha shook his head as if trying to dislodge the thoughts that were circling around in his mind. 

“I’m so sorry,” Scott said, quietly. “I know the Pack apologized and I did too. But I don’t think I really knew just what I had to apologize for. Theo, I’m so sorry that I helped further manipulate you. I’m not any better than the Dread Doctors.”

“No,” Theo protested, tugging on Scott’s hand. “You’re way better than them. Yes, you sent Deucalion to me. Yes, he told me that if I wanted power, I had to kill my pack but I did that on my own. Me. Deucalion didn’t force me to kill them. No one did. I killed Tracy and Josh on my own. I did it because I wanted power.” 

“You wanted power to get away from the people who tortured and manipulated you since you were seven years old.” 

“I still did it. I knew it was wrong and I still killed them. That’s not on you, Scott. You don’t need that on your conscience.” 

“Too late,” Scott huffed. “But even if you won’t let me take that responsibility, I still have an even bigger failure.” Theo raised an eyebrow. “You. I should’ve tried harder.”

“Scott, I literally killed you. I shot Malia. I’m the reason the Sheriff almost died. How much harder could you try and redeem someone like me? You did everything that you could.”

“I admit that if you asked me that just a year ago, I would’ve agreed. I would’ve said we did all we could and it was good that you were gone. But when I think about the man that’s fought for this Pack, bled for this Pack and almost died for us…. I clearly didn’t do enough. I didn’t even do the bare minimum.” 

“I… I was fucked up then. I don’t think I could’ve accepted the help even if it was offered. Hell was… not great. But I wasn’t going to stop, no matter what you tried.” 

“You don’t know that.” 

“I don’t but I just know I wasn’t okay back then. I don’t know if I would’ve stopped or not,” Theo sighed, fidgeting with the blanket. “I guess it doesn’t matter what happened in the past. We don’t know the outcome but I think, I think we’re pretty good now.” 

“I think we’re pretty great now,” Scott answered, squeezing Theo’s hand. “Bro.” 

“This week has been so weird,” Theo murmured, smiling faintly. “I went from being homeless and tortured by Monroe to having a house with a mom and two brothers.” 

“That’s not all you got,” Scott teased. Theo arched an eyebrow. “I think you’ll find that you also got a boyfriend.” Theo flushed but couldn’t stop smiling. “And you also got a dad to go with the mother. And a sister too.”

“Sister?” 

“Lydia,” Scott snorted. “She was livid when she found out that we not only walked into an obvious trap and got you captured but that we ignored you telling us it was an obvious trap. What Liam started, Lydia finished and Mom reinforced.” 

“Lydia?” 

“Yeah, you should really talk to her.” 

“After everything I did, I don’t think I can.” 

“Talk to her,” Scott smiled. “Trust me, I think she and Liam saw who you were long before the rest of us got on board. Oh, and Mom.”

“How can… I don’t know how this works. This having a family thing. I wasn’t very good at it the first time around.” 

“That’s because you had the wrong concept of family,” Scott replied. “You got a really bad deal, Theo. And I’m so sorry about that. But now you have probably the most awesome mother in the world, a dorky little brother that will bother you at the most awkward moments about some really random shit, a dad that can and will shoot anything to protect his kids, and the best big brother you could ever ask for.”

Theo’s lips quirked. “And he’s so humble too.” 

“I only said he’s the best. I could’ve thrown in a lot more appropriate words.” Theo snorted, pulling a smile from Scott. “You’re not on your own anymore. You have the whole Pack. And more than that, you have me, Mom, Alec, Chris, Lydia and of course, Liam.”

Theo blushed violently and Scott couldn’t help but laugh. The chimera rolled his eyes, pulling his hand away from Scott to cross his arms over his chest. Scott let him sulk for a moment before poking him on the leg. 

“Since you won’t let me take responsibility for all the things I should, can you do me a favor?” Theo narrowed his eyes but nodded. Scott grinned. “Can you try and let us be the family you deserve? No overthinking, no questioning whether you deserve it, just let us try.”

“That’s what your mom said,” Theo murmured. “She asked me to just think it over. She said I deserve a chance to be a kid.” 

“You do,” Scott assured him. “You deserve a chance at being a normal teenager. Well, a normal teenager with supernatural abilities living in a town that’s trying to pretend they don’t remember we exist.” 

“Typical teenage stuff,” Theo smirked. 

“Yeah, nothing out of the ordinary,” Scott grinned. “So think you can try?” 

“I’m not sure how to not overthink things but I have a feeling I don’t have much of a choice in this normal kid thing, do I?” 

“Oh, you definitely don’t,” Scott laughed. “And because I like you and I’m campaigning to be your favorite sibling, Lydia and Alec are planning a surprise party for you when you get out of here. Act surprised.” 

Scott couldn’t help but laugh again as Theo’s face went through a complicated face journey with his scent going from amused to happy to confused and back to happy. 

“What does a surprise party entail exactly?”

“With the Pack? Just a bunch of food, lots of games, probably a fight if Isaac and Stiles are around each other for more than a minute, and movies.” 

“Okay,” Theo mumbled. “That doesn’t sound so bad.” 

Scott reached over and ruffled Theo’s hair, earning another pout and huff. He meant it. It took Scott literally five seconds to adopt Alec as his little brother and it had been an experience. Honestly, he really should’ve seen the Theo thing coming a long time ago. From the moment Theo and Alec met, the younger wolf imprinted on the boy like a baby duckling. It worked out because Scott was frequently absent due to school and tracking down leads on Monroe. So he wasn’t as available to help Alec train. Theo more than picked up the slack. As a result, Alec was far more adept at using his abilities than Scott was when they were literally the same age. 

Alec knew all about Theo’s past with the Pack and adored the ground he walked on anyway. It was clearly a mutual thing as most of the times that Scott could recall seeing Theo with a genuine smile on his face were either with Alec or Liam. He really should’ve realized that it was always heading to this conclusion. 

“We’re going to be okay,” he said out loud. Theo arched an eyebrow but his lips quirked slightly. 

“Yeah, I think we are.” He tilted his head to the side. “But only if you explain one thing to me first.” 

“Anything.” 

“Why is Isaac lurking around the hospital? I thought everyone went home.” 

“Uhhh…. He’s um… I mean it’s Isaac. He does pretty much what he wants when he wants. I gave up questioning him a long time ago.” 

“Right,” Theo drawled. “And it has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that every time he’s around your heart turns into a stuttering mess and you get all red?” 

Scott opened his mouth to protest when he realized the chimera was teasing him. He was actually teasing him about his more than obvious crush on their fellow Pack member. This was a new thing between them but it felt as comfortable as it was when Scott teased Stiles for his thing with Derek and bickering with Alec over who ate the last piece of pizza. Yeah, they were definitely going to be okay. But still, couldn’t let the runt get away with it. 

“I definitely wouldn’t talk if I was you. Have you seen yourself whenever Liam is around? You turn into a pile of goo.” 

Predictably Theo flushed a violent shade of red, burying his face behind his hands. He shook his head before peeking out. Scott tensed when he saw the little smirk forming on Theo’s lips. He should’ve known the chimera wouldn’t go down that easy. 

“That’s true but at least I know where I stand with him. He’s my boyfriend. And Isaac is your… what? Beta? You want to make out with all your betas? Because I gotta tell you. Liam is taken and I’m pretty sure trying to make out with Alec is illegal in all states on a lot of levels.” 

Scott glared but couldn’t keep the smile from his lips. “You forgot one.” 

“Oh, yeah, you bit Hayden.” 

“Well in that case you forgot two,” Scott corrected. Theo’s brow furrowed. “You, stupid. I didn’t bite Alec or Isaac and it’s just known that they’re my betas. Why do you think it’s any different with you? You’re a wolf too.” 

“But I….”

“You’re my Pack. You’re my beta. You’re my brother. You’re my friend,” Scott said, sensing the argument brewing in Theo’s mind. “I forgive you for everything that happened before we sent you to the Skinwalkers. And one day, when you’ve truly forgiven yourself, you’ll forgive us too.” 

“Scott, I…”

“Nope. You can’t forgive me until you believe that you actually deserve our forgiveness. And that’s not going to happen until you forgive yourself. So remember our promise? You’re going to try and be open to being a normal kid and that means being open to all the love and affection you deserve.” 

“I feel like this promise just keeps shifting,” Theo said, lips forming a smile almost against his will. “I don’t really think I’m going to be good at this.” 

“You’re not,” Scott confirmed, laughing at the pout Theo gave him. “You’re going to make mistakes and you’ll probably flinch away from everyone when they try and show affection the Pack way. And that’s fine. Because it’s new. But one day, it won’t be. One day, you’ll see yourself the way I do.” 

“How… how do you see me?” 

Scott grinned. “You’re so smart. You’re like super scary smart. But it’s not just knowledge, you can adapt. You think that the manipulation techniques make you bad but they make you a great tactician. But that’s not all. You’re funny when you let yourself relax. You care so much. Not just about Alec and Liam but all of us. I’ve lost track of the times, you’ve tried to do something nice for any of us when we’re stressed but no one accepted it. You are such a good person and I’m proud to call you my brother.” 

Theo’s eyes watered but the tears never came. Now that he was healing more and more, he had a tighter rein on his emotions. That was fine. Scott would let him have that. For tonight anyway. It was all part of his plan to be an awesome big brother. 

“You want to try and get some more sleep?”

“Probably should. Liam is going to be here in a few hours,” Theo muttered, sounding way too fond for the words he was saying. “He really does abuse those visiting hours, doesn’t he?” 

Scott politely didn’t point out that there were no visiting hours when it came to Theo because both Melissa and Dr. Geyer realized the Pack wasn’t going to respect it anyway. The fact that they were even somewhat alone was a testament to how shaken the rest of them were after their earlier conversation with Theo. But Scott had a feeling that Isaac wouldn’t be the only one ghosting the halls soon. 

“Get some sleep,” Scott said in lieu of a real response. “I’ll be right here. Tara can’t get you here.” 

Theo met his eyes for a long moment before nodding. Scott took his hand again and let his thumb soothe over the back of Theo’s hand until the chimera finally gave in to his body’s need to sleep and heal. 

He settled back in his seat, hand still gripping Theo’s. He kept holding on even after he settled into a deeper sleep. Scott hoped that the contact would keep his nightmares away. He was really going to have to look into that. Theo already paid a higher penance than he should. Scott wasn’t going to sit back and let the Skinwalkers haunt Theo’s daytime as well. 

He was totally going to be the favorite brother. 


	3. Settling In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Lydia reminices about the past, Scott makes a stance and some of the Pack make an effort.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I taking liberties with canon? Yes. Very much so. Do I even remotely care? Not really! Hope you enjoy!

Lydia lived in Beacon Hills her whole life. And while she did spend the majority of her early years playing vacant and shallow, she wasn’t as oblivious as she pretended. She remembered Scott and Stiles from when they were younger. She remembered they were dorky, goofy and the only other ones to befriend the quiet and shy new kid that was shoved into their class at the beginning of third grade. He was so tiny and young. He looked pale and unwell. And so very afraid. 

Normally, she wouldn’t have cared. And it hurt her now that she ever thought like that but she knew who she was then and who she was now. But somehow that sad, small child broke through her barriers and she cared. It started with “accidentally” bringing too many cookies to school and sharing them with him. Then it was clothes she “borrowed” from her older cousins. Nothing major, just a few shirts or hoodies. She just wanted him to stop looking so frail. 

And he was always so thankful. He would light up when she offered him a cookie or a sandwich. He beamed when he wore the hoodie she got for him. It was like the simple act of having used clothing was the nicest thing that ever happened to him. It broke her heart. He didn’t deserve that. Theo was a sweet kid and Lydia adored him. He was the first kid that was even remotely on her level and she enjoyed sharing glances with him in class when someone got a question wrong. He was the first person she let see her as she really was. It wasn’t as terrible as she thought it would be. 

But then he was gone. A week after he stupidly walked to be with Scott in the hospital, he was gone. His sister was dead. His parents cleared town in the middle of the night. And Theo Raeken was gone. No one questioned where the quiet, shy boy with the soft smiles and bad heart disappeared to. Stiles and Scott questioned it for a few days and then they too moved on. But Lydia always wondered until she also finally let it go. Suddenly finding herself dropping her facade of vacancy in the midst of the supernatural coming to her life was a good distraction from remembering a childhood friend. 

That is until said childhood friend came back in their senior year. He was different and yet painfully the same. He was smug and manipulative but terrified and tortured. He lashed out and hurt her, her friends, and her family. It was easy to forget about the little boy who smiled when she remembered he liked peanut butter and chocolate together when he was responsible for her being attacked on several occasions. But it all came crashing back when she saw his sister pull him into Hell. She thought that was the end until Liam brought him back. 

And while she was consumed with finding the missing Stiles, she couldn’t help but see the boy she missed in the one that returned. She saw how haunted he was. Something happened to him in his time in the skinwalker prison. Something bad. Despite everything, she wanted to help him after it was all over. But he disappeared after the Ghost Riders were gone. And when he came back, so did the hunters and the War. After all that, she was across the country at MIT and stuck checking in via FaceTime or Skype. 

She tried to reach out to him individually when it became clear that outside of Liam, Alec, and sometimes Scott, no one else in the Pack noticed that he was getting thinner but he ignored her calls. The chimera was wasting away and Lydia was stuck just watching it happen in the background. Again. She was convinced that any day she was going to get the call that he once again slipped away but she knew this time he wasn’t coming back. 

The phone call happened but not how she thought. Instead, it was a guilty-sounding Scott informing her that Theo was taken after her idiotic pack walked straight into an obvious trap. She had a ticket and a secured absence from school within the hour of her hanging up on Scott. 

What followed was an experience in accountability unlike the Pack had ever experienced before. Normally their crappy behavior would possibly be called out and everyone would move on. But Liam wouldn’t let them. Lydia wouldn’t let them. And then shockingly enough Theo wouldn’t let them. She was so proud when she heard that he stood up for himself and wouldn’t accept the Pack’s half-ass apologies. She didn’t think he had it in him. Liam was apparently working overtime as his anchor. 

And for once the Pack listened. She saw them working through their own bullshit for once instead of holding Theo and only Theo accountable. She thought maybe it was going to be okay. But then Scott called an emergency Pack meeting two days after Theo woke up and Lydia already knew from the fact that it was far away from the hospital and both Alec and Liam were missing that she wasn’t going to like what he had to say. Still, she was not all ready for what he actually had to say. 

“Kira, when you got the sword to send Theo to the skinwalker prison, did you know what it was? What it would possibly do to him?”

Kira looked surprised by the question and the subtle hostility behind it. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, glancing around the room before finally settling on the quietly seething alpha standing before them. 

“I knew that the skinwalkers were in contact with the spirit of Theo’s sister but not much else to be honest. I knew if I used the sword it would stop him.” 

“And you didn’t bother to ask how?” 

“Well no. But no one else did either. No one seemed in a rush to save him that day.” 

Scott’s jaw flexed. “And trust me, that decision is going to haunt me for the rest of my life. Especially since it didn’t end there.”

“What do you mean? He’s out now. Whatever he saw down there is over,” Stiles said, hesitating. Lydia didn’t need to be a werewolf to know that Scott was uncomfortable with exactly how to answer that question. “Right?” 

Scott ran a hand over his face tiredly. The Pack exchanged concerned glances. 

“Does this have anything to do with why Liam asked me to drop him and Alec off at the hospital at the crack of dawn?” Mason asked. 

“Last night, Theo had a really bad nightmare. I mean bad enough that Mom was worried about his ability to recover,” Scott started. “Turns out he was dreaming of Tara ripping his heart out.” 

“Oh my god,” Kira murmured. 

“It’s what happened to him down there. She chased him, ripped out his heart. He died and came back. Over and over again until Liam finally pulled him out six months later. But it doesn’t end with his dreams. Sometimes he still sees her now.” 

Lydia knew she wasn’t going to like what Scott had to say but she wasn’t prepared for that. She knew the skinwalker prison wasn’t going to be perfect but she had no idea that it was that awful. That he suffered through that. And the way the others threatened to put him back in those early days before Liam broke the sword. The way they never hesitated to bring his sister up. She could see why Scott was angry all over again. 

“We did that to him. We as a Pack sent a kid that’s actually a few weeks younger than Corey to something that continues to haunt him even a whole year later. I know you all made your apologies yesterday and some of you even meant them. But Theo is Pack. Theo is more than that. He’s my beta and my brother.” 

Lydia gave Scott an appreciative look. She knew the alpha was feeling protective but she wasn’t sure if it was directed towards Liam or Theo. Though it was probably safe to say that it was a little of both. She repressed the urge to grin as some of the Pack shifted uncomfortably under the weight of Scott’s words and his glare. Good. 

“He’s suffered enough. If you genuinely cannot get past what he did, I understand. I get it. But I also get that’s he’s not the only one in this room and in this Pack with blood on his hands. We’ve forgiven and accepted so many people who have done worse to us. So this is where it ends. I’ve made my feelings clear. Theo is Pack. When Mom clears him, this will be his home. You can either accept that and actually work towards accepting him or there’s the door.” 

Lydia was busy feeling slightly impressed by Scott finally taking a firm stance with the Pack, which is why it took her a moment to notice several eyes shifting in her direction. Well except Scott. He was smirking to himself. She narrowed her eyes, wondering what that was about. But first… 

“What?” 

“It’s just that… you and Theo.” 

Lydia glared at Stiles. “Me and Theo what?” 

“If anyone in here has a reason to hate him, it’s you,” Malia finally blurted. “So why are you so calm?”

“Because I get it. I get him. I know what it’s like to hide behind a mask because you don’t want anyone to see what you’re going through. Theo hid behind a mask and did awful things. But he’s trying to make up for them. I’m not going to hold a grudge against someone who is genuinely trying to change. That is literally how you get supervillains.”. 

There was a heavy moment of silence as they all looked at her with a variety of surprise, pride, and amusement. She rolled her eyes. 

“Well, as fun as this has been, I actually had something to do on my agenda for today. Scott, you got those measurements for me?” 

Scott pulled a piece of paper out of a notebook on the coffee table. There in his messy scrawl were the measurements for what would ultimately be Theo’s room. Though he would still be sharing it with Scott, it was going to be mostly redesigned for him. Lydia grinned when she saw the notes at the bottom that included Theo’s measurements for clothes and shoes. It wasn’t necessary as she already had Jordan break into Theo’s truck to get that information for her but she appreciated the alpha’s effort. 

“Don’t go too crazy. You already got a bunch of stuff. And you know how he is.”

“Scott, you know me.” 

“I do. I also know you broke into Peter’s apartment when you got back to town and threatened him until he gave you access to his credit card.” 

Lydia smirked. Peter was a huge pain in the ass and she might never really ever be comfortable around him. But having unlimited access to his black card would do wonders for improving their relationship. Scott raised an eyebrow. Lydia’s smirk grew. Scott snorted. 

“Fine, do what you want. I’m going to head back to the hospital. I’m having lunch with Mom, Alec, Liam, and Isaac in Theo’s room.” 

“Isaac has been spending a lot of time at the hospital since he got back,” Lydia said, watching Scott carefully. “I wonder what’s up with that.” 

“Uh, I mean it’s Isaac. Who even knows what goes through his head.” 

Lydia pursed her lips but chose to just ignore the obvious answer of Scott. Scott almost always knew what Isaac was thinking and vice versa. Scott just unequivocally adopted their loner chimera into his heart. Of course, Isaac was going to do everything in his power to protect him. She really should’ve warned the Puppy Pack about the weird codependent and overprotective relationship between Scott and Isaac. But she had a feeling they would be finding out soon enough. She grinned, making a note to talk to Theo later. If anyone picked up on their weird-ass vibe, it was him. 

“Fine, keep your secrets,” Lydia beamed. “I have ways of finding out.” 

The brief moment of panic that flitted through Scott’s eyes let her know that Theo definitely knew and would fully be on board with helping with the inevitable shenanigans. Scott narrowed his eyes. 

“Do not corrupt my little brothers more than you already have!”

“I make no promises. I’m off!” Lydia announced, practically skipping from the room while Scott glared. He must not remember who she is if he really thought she wasn’t going to sink her claws into Theo the moment she could. She already had Alec on her side. And she suspected it wouldn’t take much to get Theo. Well once they wore down the self-hatred and martyr complex he had going on. 

She was so occupied giggling about the idea of stealing Scott’s little brothers that she failed to notice that she had far more people in her car than she expected. She glanced at Stiles sitting in the front seat before turning to look at Corey, Mason, Malia and Kira smushed together in the back seat. 

“Why are you all here?”

“You’re going shopping for Theo,” Stiles said, shrugging. “We want to help.” 

“And this has nothing to do with the fact that you’re all feeling even more guilty because every single one of you enjoys taunting him with his sister or threatening to put him back in the ground?”

She took a small sliver of pleasure in watching them wince and be uncomfortable. Good. 

“Buying him things isn’t going to undo all that. You guys in the back didn’t know him before but Stiles you know that Theo never had much to begin with. He’s not going to find value in objects. You guys want to get in good with him? Put the work in. Prove it.” 

“How? Lydia… he said he was okay with us not being friends. He literally accepted that we would still hate him. He’s okay with that,” Mason said, quietly. “How do we put the work in? What do we do?”

Lydia sighed, starting her car. This wasn’t how she intended to spend her afternoon but she should’ve seen this coming. The only members of the Pack that Theo was even on slightly good terms with besides Lydia were the ones most likely to tell them to collectively fuck off and figure it out themselves when it came to Theo. 

And if dealing with the Pack while they asked increasingly more annoying questions would be of even the smallest benefit to Theo, then Lydia was willing to endure. But she was definitely going to kill Scott because she noticed how quick he was to take off when he saw them all in her car. Also, she was almost eighty percent sure that asshole spoiled the surprise part of the surprise party she and Alec were planning. She paused. Make that ninety-nine percent sure. She was definitely going to start Operation Scisaac as soon as Theo was home. 

Scott McCall was going down. 

* * *

Scott ignored the feeling of impending doom in favor of watching what was rapidly becoming one of his favorite sights in the world. All of his betas were clustered on or around Theo’s bed playing some version of Uno that definitely didn’t follow any conventional rules. It was made all the more ridiculous as both Isaac and Theo clearly had no clue how to play and Alec was a shameless asshole who had no problem exploiting that while Liam was just enjoying that the game required Theo to be pressed close against him so they all had room to play. Also, he was blatantly cheating in Theo’s favor. It was madness, chaos, and totally perfect. 

“Isaac, you have to draw six.” 

“What? Why? I thought that was only if you put a Draw card down. You just put down a six.” 

“It’s the rules.” 

“I feel like it’s not.” 

“We offered to let you read them first,” Alec said, tone sickeningly sweet. “I can still find them from wherever Liam tossed them.” 

Isaac narrowed his eyes, clearly not trusting the younger wolf but also at a loss as to why. Scott snorted, breaking the staredown as all eyes shifted to him and the bag of food in his hands. It said a lot about Liam and his never-ending hunger that he abandoned Theo without hesitation in order to bound over to the alpha and grab the bag from his hand. 

Or maybe it had to do with Alec who yelped as soon as Liam was gone and raced over to fight him over getting the pick of food. Isaac threw a long-suffering look at Scott before placing his cards in the pile on the bed and walking over to sort through their pending fight. Scott grinned as his presence only added to the chaos and the uproar finally brought his mother to the room. He wasn’t at all surprised to see Chris with her as well. 

Scott ignored Chris and Melissa’s attempts at imposing order on the three wolves in favor of joining Theo on the bed. He smiled as Theo shifted under the arm the alpha was holding up, settling against Scott’s side. Scott leaned his head against Theo’s. 

“How did it go with the Pack?” Theo asked after a quiet moment. Scott sighed, squeezing the chimera a little. 

“I would ask how you knew but… it’s you.” Theo snickered. “It went about as well as you can expect. Kira had no answers as to what the Skinwalkers prison was like. So that’s a bust. As for the Pack, well they feel even more guilty now. They’re off with Lydia to buy even more stuff for your room with Peter’s black card. I hope you like a lot of really random shit because that’s what you’re about to get.” 

Theo pulled away slightly to give him a confused look. Scott had to repress the urge to pinch his cheeks. He was too adorable. 

“I thought I was sharing the room with you,” Theo said, still frowning. “Why would they fill it with stuff for me?” 

“Theo, I’m barely ever there. It’s going to be mostly your space with a place for me to camp out when I am there. It’s your home and your room. Lydia did the same thing for Alec when he moved in.” 

“I… I don’t want to put you out of your room. They shouldn’t… It’s your room.” 

“You’re not. You’ve never had a space that was all your own besides your truck. So I want this to be as much yours as it can be.” 

“About that, I might have a solution that works for everyone,,” Chris said, stepping towards the boys, leaving Melissa to finish organizing the boys. The hunter smiled softly at Theo. “How you feeling, kiddo?” 

“Better,” Theo replied, clearly feeling a little shy. Scott smiled to himself and tugged him a little more into his arms. Theo relaxed a little more. “I’m feeling okay.” 

“Good,” Chris said, smoothly ignoring the chimera’s hesitance. “So I know you might be feeling a little awkward with sharing with Scott, so I had an idea. I still have my loft.” Theo tensed and Scott could smell his confusion. 

“Theo?” Liam asked, looking up from where he was scooping more than a healthy serving of rice onto a plate. He was ignored as Alec and Isaac were also picking up on Theo’s distress. 

“You had one job,” Melissa chided, hip checking Chris out of the way. She sat down on the edge of the bed and lifted Theo’s hand. “What Chris meant to say was that he wants to offer his old loft to Scott and Isaac. They’re almost twenty years old. They’re old enough to be on their own. That way you don’t have to worry about sharing your space with Scott and we don’t have to deal with them.” 

Scott fought the urge to groan at yet another jab at his relationship with Isaac. They all swore they were being so subtle but they were not. Still, there was a little smile spreading on Theo’s lips and that almost made it worth it. Almost. 

“So what do you say? That work for you two?” Melissa asked, eyes flickering to her oldest son. Scott grinned, meeting Isaac’s waiting gaze. The other wolf winked before shoving Alec away from the chicken he was reaching for. 

“Yeah, we’re definitely down for that,” Scott answered. “So, the room is all yours.” 

“Oh,” Theo breathed out. “Okay.” 

Melissa gave him another fond smile before going back to the fight that was once again on now that Theo was back to normal. Scott was mildly concerned. He knew for a fact that Liam and Alec ate regular meals. Why the hell were they always so rabid when it came to food? Should he be concerned… Nah. 

“So I’m sorry,” Chris said, sighing and bringing Scott’s attention back to the hunter. “I am very painfully bad at this whole family thing. I did not mean to make you think that we were kicking you out before you even moved in.”

“That’s okay. I think I just… it’s okay. I don’t think I’m that good at this either.”

“You’re better than you think are,” Scott hummed. Theo arched an eyebrow. “I know you know how to play Uno. We learned in fourth grade.” 

Theo stared at him blankly before a genuine smile played on his face. It was different from the smitten ones he gave to Liam but also not the smirks from before. This one was different and it felt like it was for family. For them. 

“Well, it seemed important to him that I didn’t know. So I figured I’d let him have that.” 

“And you said you were bad at this brother thing,” Scott scoffed, poking the chimera on his side where he knew he was particularly ticklish. Theo squirmed away from his touch, flushing a bright red before literally shoving him away. Scott laughed and went to fix his own plate of food. 

And so the rest of the afternoon passed peacefully. Scott watched as Theo gradually relaxed more around Chris and finally didn’t flinch when someone other than him, Liam, or Melissa showed him affection. He was hopeful that more days like this would start to show Theo that he belonged. And once that happened, maybe he could start bringing the Pack around him more. But he wanted to make sure that Theo was secure enough first. Of course, he should’ve remembered who his Pack was. 

Scott was just scrolling through his phone catching up on the Pack group chat when the peace and quiet of the room was invaded by several members of said Pack. Of course, they somehow managed to get here when it was just Scott and Theo. At the moment, Liam was in the process of negotiating an overnight stay with his stepfather. He already knew Liam would win. He was particularly stubborn when it came to the things that mattered. And Theo mattered to him. Alec had left with Chris and Melissa and Isaac was off moving his stuff from Derek’s apartment to the one he would be sharing with Scott. 

So Scott was the only person left to witness Stiles, Mason, and Corey bounding into the room carrying a variety of pillows, blankets, snacks, and strangely a laptop. Scott blinked, looking between the newly arrived trio and an equally confused Theo. 

“Uh, guys?” 

“So we were with Lydia at the mall buying stuff,” Stiles said, hands waving as he directed Mason and Corey with setting up the truly horrendous amount of bed linens. “And we were looking for some posters. You can’t have a room without posters. It’s part of being a teenager.” 

Theo raised an eyebrow and looked at Scott. The alpha shrugged. He had no more idea what was happening than Theo did. 

“So then I remembered when we were kids, you really liked superheroes. The Flash, right? And Green Lantern.”

Theo looked adorably surprised that Stiles remembered this obscure fact about a kid he had known only a few years. Stiles didn’t seem to notice as he was still bouncing around the room like a hummingbird on crack, setting out the truly horrendous amount of linens into a makeshift lounge. 

“But then Mason over here took personal offense because he’s a heathen.” 

“Look the Flash is cool but Thor and Captain America are just better.” 

“You’re going based on cinematic universes!” Stiles countered, jabbing a finger in the other human’s direction. “Admittedly the DCEU hasn’t gotten off to the best start but their animated movies are amazing and the comics speak for themselves.” 

Mason opened his mouth to argue but Corey cut him off, rolling his eyes at them both. 

“What Mason and Stiles mean to say is that in the middle of their inane nerd bitching, we all realized that you probably missed out on all of that anyway. So we figured we would help catch you up to speed on all things Marvel and DC.” 

“Catch me up?” Theo murmured. 

“Movie marathon!” Stiles cheered. “Last time I checked, Dr. Geyer said you should be here for like another three days.” He paused, picking up Theo’s file from the foot of the bed. He scanned a few words and nodded. “Yeah, three days. So we figure that’s more than enough time to catch you up on at least some of the MCU and the DCAU.” 

“DC… what?” 

“Oh, young grasshopper, you have so much to learn,” Stiles said, patting Theo on the leg. 

Scott bit his lip to hide the laugh forming at the fact the chimera was so confused, he didn’t bother to flinch away. It seems they took his confusion as a signal to continue and soon they had the laptop hooked up to the previously unnoticed television. Scott could only watch as Corey and Mason then took it upon themselves to make sure Theo was comfortably propped up with several pillows, blankets, and more snacks than he probably knew what to do with. The whole time Theo just continued to watch them with wide eyes. 

The madness only escalated when Derek stomped into the room with a scowl and even more blankets. Stiles paused, taking in his boyfriend with a confused look. Scott frowned. So the former alpha wasn’t originally part of this… whatever this was?

“Derek, what are you doing here?” 

“Liam told me this is the beginning of Pop Culture 101 and told me to bring more blankets.” 

“Liam?” Theo murmured. His eyes darting around the room once again but this time there was a hint of understanding. He nodded in Derek’s direction before looking at Scott. “I get it.” 

“I’m glad you do.”

“You should go home for the night.”

“But…” 

“It’s okay. Liam is going to stay and Derek is here. You and Isaac deserve the night off.” 

Scott narrowed his eyes. On the surface, there was nothing insidious about what Theo was saying. But there was this hint of something in his tone. There was something smug in his scent. It was echoed by his anchor who chose this moment to reappear. He didn’t say a word to Scott or even bat an eye at the way the room had been totally transformed. He merely pressed a kiss to Theo’s forehead before jumping into the argument about which movie they should start with. 

“Scott, go home. You don’t have to worry about me. I’m going to be okay. Liam will be here. And I have the Pack… my Pack. I’ll be okay.” 

Scott forced a smile through his worry. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the others… it was just that he didn’t trust the others. Theo was setting off every protective instinct he had but he also knew that the Pack would never fully be cohesive if he didn’t learn to let go a bit. Besides Liam was there and if Theo had any nightmares, he was the best bet at chasing them off anyway. And with Derek there, Stiles would be on his best behavior, if he wasn’t already planning on it. So really it was fine.

“Go spend time with your boyfriend.” 

Scott tensed. “How did… we’re not together.” 

“Right,” Theo smirked. “See you tomorrow? We can have breakfast?”

Scott gave him a warm smile. “Yeah, Theo. We can have breakfast.” 

He ruffled his latest beta’s hair and grinned wider at the indignant snuffing sound he let out. As he moved around the room collecting his jacket and keys, he couldn’t help but watch as Liam abandoned the argument with Mason to slide back into his previous spot on the bed with Theo settled against his chest. The chimera practically melted in Liam’s arms and Scott knew he wouldn’t be needed tonight. 

As he left them to watch The Flashpoint Paradox, he was hopeful that maybe they could get through this after all. 

“Scott?” Isaac’s confused voice greeted him as he approached Roscoe. “Where are you going? Everything okay with the kid?” 

“Yeah, they’re having a movie marathon,” Scott snorted. “We’ve been relieved for the evening.” 

Isaac tilted his head to the side. Scott didn’t bother to listen in as he knew it was nothing bad judging by the smile on the taller wolf’s lips. 

“So they finally pulled their heads out of their asses, huh?”

“Yeah, I think they’ll be okay. So any idea of what to do with the rest of the night?” 

Isaac smirked. “Yeah, I can think of a few things. I can show you what I’ve done with the loft so far. I got us set up in Argent’s old room.” 

“Us,” Scott drawled, moving closer to Isaac. “So we’re sharing a room in an apartment with three rooms? You sure the Pack won’t find that suspicious?” 

“I’ve spent the past two nights at this hospital to keep an eye on you and your latest stray and they still haven’t figured it out.” 

“Lydia has it. Sort of,” Scott murmured, pressing Isaac back against the side of the jeep. “She thinks I have a crush on you.” 

“Does she now?” Isaac grinned. “Is she right? Do you have a crush on me?” 

“I used to,” Scott admitted. Isaac’s gaze grew softer. “But it’s so much more than that. I love you.”

“I love you too,” Isaac replied, draping his arms around Scott. “How long before the rest of them figure out we’ve been dating for almost a year?” 

“Mom and Chris definitely know. Theo knows which means Liam knows. It’s only a matter of time before Alec figures it out and Liam tells Mason.” 

“And then everyone will know,” Isaac laughed. “So I’m guessing by the time Theo comes home?” 

“Probably.” 

“And I was enjoying the sneaking around too. It was kind of fun.”

“It was but I’m more than ready for us to be just us without the sneaking around,” Scott said. “I’m glad you’re staying.” 

“I am too,” Isaac murmured right before leaning down to kiss Scott softly. “Come on, I can’t wait to show you the bedroom.” 

“Not even a hint of subtlety there. The romance is dead.” 

Isaac threw him a look before climbing into the passenger side of the car. Scott rolled his eyes, opening his senses a bit for just a moment. He could hear Stiles, Mason, and Corey’s happy chatter mixing in with Theo, Liam, and Derek. Theo’s heart was steady and in sync with Liam’s. Even Derek seemed happy. And of course, there was the familiar scent of love, friendship, and desire sitting in the car. 

Yeah, they were definitely going to be okay. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked. There will likely be more coming. I had an idea to continue this chapter but it got unwieldy so I had to cut it. Expect to see that at some point.


End file.
